Minstrel Banjo

For enthusiasts of early banjo

Reminiscences Of A Banjo Player.

Second letter.

By A. Baur.

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...I heard a performance once on the banjo that would have been considered remarkable if it had been rendered upon any other instrument. In fact, Blind Tom, the phenomenal pianist, won thunders of applause, and owes much of his subsequent success to the performance of three pieces of music at the same time. He played "Yankee Doodle" and "Fishers Hornpipe" on the piano, and sang "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp" all at the same time. The performance of which I speak consisted of the player executing "Wait for the Wagon" in E major, and "Yankee Doodle" in A major on the banjo, while he sang the song "Old Dog Tray" in D major. The two tunes were as plain and distinct, as if played upon two separate banjos, and the vocal part could have been no better. There is no comparison between the two. Blind Tom had the whole fingerboard of the piano to work out his tunes on, while the banjo player had but five strings, one of which he could not finger. There is only this difference in the two performances; Blind Tom is known far and wide for his wonderful rendition of three pieces of music at one and the same time, while the performer upon the lowly banjo is forgotten. I have often regretted that I do not remember the name of the player, but the circumstances under which I heard him were such that it is not to be wondered at that I forgot who it was; it was during the war, and I had been severely wounded and taken home to New York. The doctors had decided that I could not recover unless I had a change of climate, and it was while waiting to gain sufficient strength to travel that some friends, wishing to brighten me up and knowing my fondness for the banjo, brought the player of whom I speak to my room. Shortly afterwards I left New York and did not return for six years. Immediately upon my return I made a thorough search for the person who had played for me. My friends did not know what had become of him. They had heard him play and brought him to my room to amuse me. After his visit they never saw him again. He played other pieces, but the three I speak of were so much out of the common run of performances that I have never forgotten them. I have often tried to arrange "Wait For The Wagon" and "Yankee Doodle" as he played it but my efforts always ended in dismal failure.

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from S. S. Stewart's Banjo and Guitar Journal

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